2.2 Accessing Oracle Application Express Using a Keyboard
This section describes how to access components in Oracle Application Express using a keyboard.
Important:
The Oracle Application Express interface is intended for use with the US keyboard layout. Users of other keyboard layouts should refer to the US keyboard layout in conjunction with this documentation as there may be incompatibilities regarding number and special character keys, such as the ' (quote) key.
2.2.1 Using Date Pickers
There are many keyboard shortcuts for the Date Picker.
To open a Date Picker:
-
Tab to the relevant input field.
-
Press CTRL+HOME to open the Date Picker.
-
Once the Date Picker is open, you have the following navigation options:
-
By month:
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Press PAGE UP to go to the previous month.
-
Press PAGE DOWN to go to the next month.
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Press CTRL +HOME to go to the current month.
-
-
By week:
-
Press CTRL+UP to go to the previous week.
-
Press CTRL+DOWN to go to the next week.
-
-
By day:
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Press CTRL+LEFT to go to the previous day.
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Press CTRL+RIGHT to go to the next day.
-
-
Once you are finished with the Date Picker:
- Press ENTER to accept the selected date.
- Press ESCAPE to close the date picker without selection.
- Press CTRL+END to close the date picker and erase the date.
Parent topic: Accessing Oracle Application Express Using a Keyboard
2.2.2 General Keyboard Shortcuts
Table 2-1 lists general Oracle Application Express keyboard shortcuts.
If a page incorporates specialized keyboard shortcuts, click the Help icon (located in the top-right of the page) and select Shortcuts. (Not all pages have specialized shortcuts.)
Table 2-1 Oracle Application Express Keyboard Shortcuts
Where | Keys | Action |
---|---|---|
Any page |
Ctrl+Quote |
Display Global Search |
Any page with special keyboard shortcuts |
Alt+Shift+F1 |
Display the list of valid Keyboard Shortcuts for the page |
Page Designer, Layout |
Ctrl+Alt+D |
Display from here |
Page Designer, Layout |
Ctrl+Alt+T |
Display from page |
Page Designer |
Alt+2 |
Go to Dynamic Actions |
Page Designer |
Alt+9 |
Go to Gallery, Buttons |
Page Designer |
Alt+8 |
Go to Gallery, Items |
Page Designer |
Alt+7 |
Go to Gallery, Regions |
Page Designer |
Alt+5 |
Go to Layout |
Page Designer |
Alt+F1 |
Go to Help |
Page Designer |
Ctrl+F1 |
Go to Messages |
Page Designer |
Alt+4 |
Go to Page Shared Components |
Page Designer |
Alt+3 |
Go to Processing |
Page Designer |
Alt+6 |
Go to Property Editor |
Page Designer |
Alt+1 |
Go to Rendering |
Page Designer |
Alt+Shift+F1 |
List Keyboard Shortcuts |
Page Designer |
Ctrl+Alt+F |
Page Search |
Page Designer |
Ctrl+Y |
Redo |
Page Designer |
Alt+F11 |
Restore/Expand |
Page Designer |
Ctrl+Alt+S |
Save |
Page Designer |
Ctrl+Alt+R |
Save and Run Page |
Page Designer |
Ctrl+Alt+E |
Toggle Hide Empty Positions |
Page Designer |
Ctrl+Z |
Undo |
Page Designer with focus anywhere that has a context menu |
Shift+F10 or Context menu key |
Open context menu |
Page Designer Layout Gallery and Icon List in wizards |
Arrow keys |
Move selection |
Page Designer Property Editor with focus on a group heading |
Up/Down Arrow keys |
Move to previous/next group |
Page Designer Property Editor with focus on a group heading |
Home/End keys |
Move to first/last group |
Page Designer Property Editor with focus on a group heading |
Left/Right Arrow keys or Enter or Space |
Expand or collapse the group |
Page Designer With focus on any tab |
Arrow keys |
Select previous/next tab |
Focus on a splitter handle |
Arrow keys |
Move splitter |
Focus on a splitter handle |
Enter |
Expand or collapse splitter if supported by splitter |
On pages that have a splitter |
Ctrl+F6 |
Move to next splitter |
On pages that have a splitter |
Ctrl+Shift+F6 |
Move to previous splitter |
Focus on any field with a (?) help icon |
Alt+F1 |
Open field help dialog |
Focus on a field help dialog |
Alt+F6 |
Move focus back to field without closing dialog |
Focus in any dialog |
Escape |
Close dialog |
Any page, focus on region display selector "tabs" |
Arrow keys |
Select the previous/next tab |
SQL Commands |
Ctrl+Enter |
Run the current command |
Code Editor |
Ctrl+Z |
Undo |
Code Editor |
Ctrl+Shift+Z |
Redo |
Code Editor |
Ctrl+F |
Find |
Code Editor |
Ctrl+Shift+F |
Replace |
Code Editor with focus in find field |
Up/Down Arrows |
Find previous/next instance |
Code Editor |
Ctrl+Space |
Auto complete when available |
Code Editor |
Alt+F6 |
Leave code editor and go to next tab stop |
Code Editor |
Alt+Shift+F6 |
Leave code editor and go to previous tab stop |
Parent topic: Accessing Oracle Application Express Using a Keyboard
2.2.3 Keyboard Shortcuts in CSS Calendar
Table 2-2 lists available Oracle Application Express keyboard shortcuts in CSS Calendar.
When the calendar grid (month, week or day view) is being focused, the arrow keys can be used to navigate within the calendar. There are 2 calendar browsing methods: Event Browsing that focuses the existing calendar events and Calendar Browsing that allows to freely select dates or date ranges. Initial mode is Event Browsing. The actual behavior depends on the current view.
Table 2-2 Oracle Application Express Keyboard Shortcuts in CSS Calendars
Where | Keys | Action |
---|---|---|
Event Browsing |
Up Arrow |
Go to the previous event. If on the first event in the given view, move to the last event. |
Event Browsing |
Down Arrow |
Go to the next event. If on the last event in the given view, move to the first one. |
Event Browsing |
N |
Switch to Calendar Browsing mode. |
Event Browsing |
Escape |
Leave browsing mode. The calendar Grid is now being focused and [Tab] can be used to navigate to other application regions. |
Month View |
Left Arrow |
Go to the previous day (if on the first day of a month, switch to the previous month). |
Month View |
Right Arrow |
Go to the next day (if on the last day of a month, switch to the next month). |
Month View |
Down Arrow |
Go to the next week; same day. |
Month View |
Up Arrow |
Go to the Previous week; same day. |
Month View |
SHIFT + RIGHT |
Extend the selection by one day. Only up to the end of the current view. |
Month View |
SHIFT + LEFT |
Decrease the selection by one day. Only until the selection spans one day. |
Month View |
ENTER or SPACE |
Execute the Create Link given as Plug-in attribute by the developer or fire Calendar Date Select event. |
Month View |
Escape |
Leave Calendar Browsing and go back to Event Browsing. |
Month View |
Page Up or Page Down |
Move to the next/previous month. |
Week View |
LEFT |
Go to the previous day (if on the first day of a week, switch to the previous week). |
Week View |
RIGHT |
Go to the next day (if on the last day of a month, switch to the next month). |
Week View |
SHIFT + RIGHT |
Extend the selection by one day. Only up to the end of the current view. |
Week View |
SHIFT + LEFT |
Decrease the selection by one day. Only until the selection spans one day. |
Week View |
UP |
Move selection 30 minutes back in time. |
Week View |
DOWN |
Move selection 30 minutes forward. |
Week View |
SHIFT+ DOWN |
Extend selection range by 30 minutes |
Week View |
SHIFT+ UP |
Decrease selection by 30 minutes as long as the minimum of 30 minutes is left. |
Week View |
ENTER or SPACE |
Execute the Create Link given as plug-in attribute by the developer or fire Calendar Date Select event. |
Week View |
Escape |
Leave Calendar Browsing and go back to Event Browsing. |
Week View |
Page Up or Page Down |
Move to the next/previous month. |
Day View |
LEFT |
Go to the previous day. |
Day View |
RIGHT |
Go to the next day. |
Day View |
UP |
Move selection 30 minutes back in time. |
Day View |
DOWN |
Move selection 30 minutes forward. |
Day View |
SHIFT+ DOWN |
Extend selection range by 30 minutes. |
Day View |
SHIFT+ UP |
Decrease selection by 30 minutes as long as the minimum of 30 minutes is left. |
Day View |
ENTER or SPACE |
Execute the Create Link given as plug-in attribute by the developer or fire Calendar Date Select event. |
Day View |
Escape |
Leave Calendar Browsing and go back to Event Browsing. |
Day View |
Page Up or Page Down |
Move to the next/previous day. |
List View |
Not Applicable |
The list view has no special keyboard support. If an edit link is defined by the application developer, the Tab key can be used to navigate between the entries |
Parent topic: Accessing Oracle Application Express Using a Keyboard
2.2.4 Keyboard Shortcuts in Interactive Grid Regions
Interactive grid regions in Oracle Application Express come with many keyboard shortcuts and keyboard-specific features to help the keyboard-only, and power user. Specifically they are designed to provide all functionality that is available with the mouse, to be also available to keyboard users.
In addition, the grid containing the data provides two distinct modes of interaction: Navigation and Edit mode. Navigation mode is designed for use when the grid is not currently editable and allows fast and easy navigation around the grid using keyboard. Navigation mode is the default and the only mode if the interactive grid is not editable. Edit mode is designed for use when the grid is currently editable, and keyboard behavior differs slightly as described in the section that follows.
The following table lists available Oracle Application Express keyboard shortcuts in interactive grid regions. If the Mode states Any, the corresponding keyboard shortcut works in both Navigation and Edit modes.
Table 2-3 Oracle Application Express Keyboard Shortcuts in Interactive Grid Regions
Mode | Location | Keys | Description |
---|---|---|---|
Any |
Grid View |
F8 |
Toggle selection mode between Row Selection and Cell Selection. |
Any Note: In Edit mode, Tab may have special meaning in certain situations, such as when moving between editable cells. |
General |
Tab or Shift+Tab |
Move to the next or previous tab stop in the interactive grid region. Note: The interactive grid region consists of multiple separate user interface elements, some of which handle tab stops differently depending on the element type and its expected keyboard semantics. For example, the toolbar and pagination controls are implemented as separate tab stops, whereas the grid view and icon view are implemented as a single tab stop where cursor key navigation is used to move around the view elements when the view has focus. |
Any |
Grid view, column header has focus |
Enter or Space |
Opens the column header menu, allowing quick actions on a specific column (for example filtering, aggregating, or hiding). |
Any |
Grid view, column header has focus |
Windows: Ctrl+Left / Ctrl+Right Mac: Ctrl+Cmd+Left / Ctrl+Cmd+Right |
Increase, or decrease column width. Sets the Minimum Column Width report setting for that column. |
Any |
Grid view, column header has focus |
Shift+Left / Shift+Right |
Move column to the next or previous column position. Sets the display order for that column. |
Any |
Grid view, column header has focus |
Alt+Up / Alt+Down Shift+Alt+Up / Shift+Alt+Down |
Sort ascending (up) or descending (down) on the current column. Use the shift key modifier to add to the existing search columns. |
Any |
Grid view, column header menu open |
Tab or Shift+Tab |
Move to next or previous tab stop in the column header menu. Focus is constrained in the menu widget, so tabbing on the last focusable element in the menu will loop focus back to the first focusable element. Note: This is not currently implemented as a single tab stop, so Tab / Shift+Tab must be used to navigate in the menu. |
Any |
Grid view, column header menu open |
Escape |
Close the column header menu. |
Any |
Grid view, single row view, focus on column |
ALT+F1 |
Show help for an item. Note: Only shows help if help has been defined for that column. |
Navigation |
Grid view |
Up/Down/Left/Right arrow keys |
When focus is in the grid view, use the arrow cursor keys to move around the entire grid (including column headers). When a row is focused, the row will also automatically be selected. Note: The grid view will remember its last focused cell, so if you Tab away, then later move focus back to the grid view, you will be taken back to the last focused cell. |
Navigation |
Grid view |
Windows: Ctrl+Up / Ctrl+Down, Space, Ctrl+Space Mac: Ctrl+Alt+Up /Ctrl+Alt+Down, Space, Ctrl+Alt+Space |
Move without changing the selection. Use Space key to select or Ctrl+Space to toggle selection. See Also: "About Configuring Interactive Grids to Support Multi-select" |
Navigation |
Grid view |
Shift+Up / Shift+Down |
Range select and de-select multiple rows. See Also: "About Configuring Interactive Grids to Support Multi-select" |
Navigation |
Grid view |
Page Up / Page Down |
Move one page up or down in the current column. |
Navigation |
Grid view |
Home / End |
Move to first, or last cell in the current row. |
Navigation |
Grid view |
Enter or F2 |
Switches from Navigation to Edit mode. Note: Only works if the interactive grid is defined as editable. See "Making an Existing Interactive Grid Editable" in Oracle Application Express App Builder User’s Guide. |
Navigation |
Editable grid |
Insert |
Will add a row after the last selected row or if no row is selected before the first row. |
Navigation |
Editable grid |
Delete |
Deletes the selected rows. |
Navigation |
Icon view |
Up/Down/Left/Right arrow keys |
When focus is in the icon view, use the arrow cursor keys to move around the icons. When an icon is focused, its corresponding row is automatically selected. Note: The icon view will remember its last focused icon, so if you Tab away, then later move focus back to the icon view, you will be taken back to the last focused icon. |
Navigation |
Icon view |
Home / End |
Move to first, or last icon. |
Edit |
Grid view |
Tab or Shift+Tab |
Row navigation. Move to the next, or previous cell on the same row, and automatically opens the edit control for that cell if applicable. Note: When at the end of a row, Tab takes the user to the first cell in the next row. |
Edit |
Grid view |
Enter or Shift+Enter |
Column navigation. Move to the next, or previous cell in the same column, and automatically opens the edit control for that cell if applicable. Note: If the edit control itself uses the Enter key (for example a text area), this shortcut will not work and the user will have Ctrl+F6 to close the popup without leaving edit mode then press Enter or Shift+Enter. Pressing Ctrl+F6 again will open the closed popup. |
Edit |
Grid view |
Escape |
Exits Edit mode, and goes back to Navigation mode. Note: If the edit control itself uses the Escape key (for example a radio group that uses a popup control, where Escape key closes the popup), then Escape will need to pressed twice to first close the popup, then exit Edit mode. |
Parent topic: Accessing Oracle Application Express Using a Keyboard
2.2.5 About Configuring Interactive Grids to Support Multi-select
Interactive grids must be configured to support multi-select. When multi-select is enabled, users can use arrow keys to move around an entire grid, use the Space key to select, or use Ctrl+Space to toggle selections.
To configure an interactive grid to support multi-select:
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Editable interactive grid - Configure the
APEX$ROW_SELECTOR
column which is automatically created for you when you make an interactive grid editable. Under Settings, set the Enable Multi Select attribute to Yes (the default). -
Non-editable interactive grid - Use an advanced JavaScript configuration. To see an example, install the Sample Interactive Grids packaged application and see Multiple Selection example under Reporting.
See Also:
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"Making an Existing Interactive Grid Editable" in the Oracle Application Express App Builder User’s Guide
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"Installing a Productivity and Sample App" in the Oracle Application Express App Builder User’s Guide
Parent topic: Accessing Oracle Application Express Using a Keyboard
2.2.6 Accessing Interactive Report Regions
This section describes how to access common features within Interactive Report regions.
- Searching Data in an Interactive Report
- Using the Actions Menu
- Managing Bulk Updates
- Utilizing Drill Down Links
- Editing Existing Filters
- Loading Saved Reports
Parent topic: Accessing Oracle Application Express Using a Keyboard
2.2.6.1 Searching Data in an Interactive Report
If a search bar displays above an interactive report then the Include Search Bar attribute has been enabled in Report Attributes. This attribute is enabled by default when a new interactive report is created.
To execute a search:
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Press TAB until the search field has focus.
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Type your search keywords into the search field.
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Press ENTER to invoke the search.
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To refine your search to a specific column:
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Press TAB to access the magnifying glass icon to the left of the search field.
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Press ENTER to activate the pull down menu and display a list of all available columns to search.
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Press the DOWN or UP arrow keys on your keyboard to navigate through the list of columns.
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Press ENTER to select the column you want to search on. This sets the context of the subsequent search as specific to the column selected.
-
-
Repeat steps 1 and 2 to execute your column specific search.
Parent topic: Accessing Interactive Report Regions
2.2.6.2 Using the Actions Menu
By default, new interactive reports include both a search bar and Actions menu. Both of these features are controlled by the developer by enabling the Include Search Bar and Actions menu attributes on the Report Attributes page. Depending upon how the developer creates the report, the Action menu can contain different options.
To access the Actions menu using a keyboard:
See Also:
"About the Actions Menu" in the Oracle Application Express App Builder User’s Guide
Parent topic: Accessing Interactive Report Regions
2.2.6.3 Managing Bulk Updates
Some interactive reports in Oracle Application Express contain form items for applying bulk updates to components. All form items within the report and buttons to apply the changes are keyboard accessible. Also some pages feature a check box in the first row to perform bulk processing and corresponding Select All and Deselect All links below the report. All of these items are keyboard accessible.
Parent topic: Accessing Interactive Report Regions
2.2.6.4 Utilizing Drill Down Links
Some interactive reports in Oracle Application Express contain at least one link to edit or view a specific sub-components. These are all standard links and are therefore keyboard accessible.
Parent topic: Accessing Interactive Report Regions
2.2.6.5 Editing Existing Filters
When an existing search filter is applied to an interactive report, a search filter displays below the Search bar.
You can access the search filter using the keyboard to:
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Edit the search filter.
Press TAB to navigate to the search filter and then press ENTER to open the Filter dialog box. Focus is automatically set to first focusable element in the dialog box.
-
Disable or enable the search filter.
Press TAB to navigate to the check box to the left of the filter and SPACEBAR to disable or enable the filter.
-
Delete the search filter.
Press TAB to navigate to the search filter and then ENTER to open the Filter dialog box. Press TAB or SHIFT+TAB to navigate to the Delete button and then press ENTER.
Parent topic: Accessing Interactive Report Regions
2.2.6.6 Loading Saved Reports
If an Interactive Report includes a Search bar, Actions menu, and support for saved reports, then these options have been enabled by the developer on the Report Attributes page.
To load a saved report:
- Press TAB until the Reports select list has focus. Note that the Reports select list only displays if there are saved reports.
- Press the UP and DOWN keys to select the specific saved report you want to view.
- Press ENTER to view the saved report.
See Also:
"Managing Interactive Report Attributes" in the Oracle Application Express App Builder User’s Guide
Parent topic: Accessing Interactive Report Regions